1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to exterior vehicle mirror assemblies, and more particularly, to a pivoting detent joint for large commercial vehicle mirror assemblies that includes a built-in stop mechanism to define a selected range of pivotal movement of the mirror head support arm on a carrier base.
2) Description of Related Art
Exterior vehicle mirror assemblies are known to include a pivoting detent joint connection between a carrier base attached to the vehicle and a support arm carrying the mirror head so that the mirror can be selectively positioned and held in a desired orientation. However, most of these mirror assemblies do not have any mechanism to restrict the pivotal movement of the support arm carrying the mirror head to a defined range. To prevent damage, it is desirable to provide a built-in stop mechanism to prevent unwanted rotation of the mirror assembly beyond defined or intended ranges of movement. In mirror assemblies without a built-in stop mechanism, the mirror head can be moved to a point of hitting the vehicle, or moved beyond the limit of the detent joint to hold the support arm in a functional position. Over rotation can damage the vehicle, the mirror assembly, or both.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a mirror assembly with a pivoting detent joint so that the operational position of the mirror head can be adjusted.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a mirror assembly having a built-in stop mechanism to control the pivotal range of movement for a mirror head support arm.